Hypermat – nominated to the Crystal Clear Award 2014

Light control matters

The large supermarket Hypermat is the existing proof that lighting comfort and energy efficiency goes hand in hand. By using light controls in a smart way their energy consumption decreased with 30–35 % while creating a comfortable feeling.

Project

Hypermat wants to offer all that you may need in one store. The happy smile in their logo is representative for what they want to achieve, making their customer happier when leaving the store than before entering it. It is a popular place for shopping and from a lighting perspective – it is one of a kind.

“What we have achieved together with Hypermat is to complement their brand with a sustainable lighting solution, with light control that decreased the energy usage 30–35 % without compromising on the light comfort”, says Niclas Appelquist, Salesman at Fagerhult.

The comfortable sustainable store

For Hypermat it was important to create a comfortable, stress free environment and illuminate their merchandise clearly. They wanted to avoid as much glare from the luminaires as possible. The eye is directed to where it is the brightest area, so if disturbing light comes from the ceiling, it could cause stress and intervene on the shopping experience.

Great lighting comfort doesn’t necessary mean expensive luminaires and operation. For Fagerhult it means the opposite.

“It was all about sustainability when we started to work with the Hypermat project in 2012. They wanted to create a modern store with future proofed solutions and went a long way in their environmental thinking, from a complete recycle system of their pet bottles to intelligent light control”, Niclas says.

For a year Fagerhult had a close collaboration with Hypermat, trying out different solutions. At easter in 2014 the large retail store was finished with a lighting control above the ordinary.

Without controls the store would cost 273 Euro per day to illuminate. With light control Hypermat estimated costs 176 Euro per day which saves 97 Euro per day. The goal is to increase the savings to 110–120 Euros per day.

Solution

Throughout the entire store is a false system ceiling of 180x180 cm that enables flexibility and when needed you are able to move the luminaires. False ceilings were chosen to lower the ceiling height and create a more intimate feeling at the store.

2200 pieces of 2x49 W T5 Multilume Function provides the general light over the retail area. Its slim profile makes it almost invisible at the ceiling, the light sources are only visible when standing beneath it so from the side it is delicately hidden – adding that uniform comfort Hypermat wanted.

About 180 pieces of Kaptur LED illuminates the refrigerator and freezer areas. The 73 W version were chosen due to the high ceiling of 6 meters.

200 pieces of Multilume Hydro are used in the areas where there is a stringent hygiene demand, such as in the bakery. The industrial Inducon of 100 pieces illuminates the storage.

All luminaires are controlled with DALI and adjusted to the Helvar control system. And now to the exciting part – the light control system.

Illuminating a superstore

For supermarkets it is crucial that there is sufficient lighting. If the lighting is too dimmed, you may think it is closed or you may not see the products properly. But within such big retail areas there are a lot of money to save.

Many supermarkets have 100 % lighting output throughout the entire day, from unpacking merchandises, to opening, to closing and cleaning hours. This consumes a lot of energy.

Supermarkets are excellent places to use light controls as method to reduce the energy usage and also adjust the lighting for the different activities at the store, such as unpacking products and cleaning.

Follows the stores activities

The best kind of light control is the one that no one notices; it should follow the activities of the store in a uniform and functional way. When the light levels were set the staff from Fagerhult walked around the store with Hypermat and set the lux levels after how the lighting at each area was perceived. When the levels felt right, it was shown it was not 100 % output, instead it were levels between 50–90 %. This became an important factor to lower the energy usage.

Even though the lighting through the communication areas around the store has different light levels it is not visible for the eye – so the store gets a cohesive lighting experience.

The walls are highlighted in a pleasant way to create a sense of space and the big letters typed “bread” or “meat” helps you to navigate around the store.

“Buying” light

The whole store has pre set lighting scenarios. But there is also a way for the staff to “buy light” by clicking on extra scenarios, such as cleaning mode and adding extra light to a section when the store is closed. In that way the whole store does not have to be illuminated when unpacking items to the shelves – another feature that saves energy.

The back office and storage area is another area where energy efficiency is well thought of. Usually this area is only used before lunch. And when it is not used it is dimmed down to 10 %. Presence detectors are used to increase the lighting to 100 % when someone enters the area and after 2 AM the lighting is turned off.

The extra touch

At closing time there is always a challenge to get the customer to leave the store. When Fagerhult was installing the control system on the spot, an idea came up, why not use lighting as a way to mark the closing and to use it to guide the customers to the cashier.

Five minutes after closing the lighting in the whole store is dimmed to 50 % and a 20 minutes long lighting scenario starts. The sections at the beginning of the store are dimmed 10 % so that the customers start to move to the exit. This is a unique way to use lighting that meets the needs of the activities at the store. After the store is closed the cleaning light levels are switched on.

Pleased with the result

Fagerhult enjoyed illuminating this project and were pleased to be able to deliver a functional solution for the whole store. This project has now become an excellent showcase that demonstrates the great possibilities with lighting controls.

Hypermat is more than satisfied with the final result – a glare free uniform and comfortable, and most of all, sustainable store.

Nominated to a sustainability award

Products

Kaptur is a capped industrial luminaire that fit well in harsh and cold environments. With protection class IP 67, the fitting is an excellent choice for garages or underground corridors. Its LED solution provides easy maintenance and makes Kaptur LITE...

Pleiad SLD G2’s advanced light properties make it an ideal solution for light planning with downlights. Equipped with Fagerhult’s SLD reflector it combines flexibility with optimal light treatment. The balanced and glare-free light is well suited to both...

Simplicity is not easy. Frequently it is the standard solutions that have to satisfy the most stringent requirements on economy and flexibility. Recesso has been optimised for recess mounting in suspended ceilings with visible T-bars. A unique design...

Inducon is an industrial lighting system, manufactured with high quality materials which utilise the properties of the T5 light source.
The choice between wide, medium, or narrow beam light distribution provides a good basis for flexible lighting within...